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REPORT 




or 

CiyiL ENGINEER, UPON THE CHIRIQUI ROAD. 



Mr. Genther, having made a journey over the line of the 
Chiriqui Road, reported, on his return to New York, to the Com- 
pany, his observations thereon ; when, for the purpose of getting 
further and accurate details, the following letter was addressed 
to him. 



t't-T'- 



1 

I New York, Bee. 28th, 1859. 

Mr. Samuel Genther — 

Sir : — I have received and examined your Report, under date 
of yesterday, describing your journey across the Isthmus of Chiri- 
qui, by the old Guaroma road, and your return over the road 
opened by Mr. Morel for the Chiriqui Improvement Company. 

You have not stated what extent of this last named road is 
in a condition to permit carriage travel. Will you please do so? 

This information may become valuable for future reference, 
and as you will probably be absent, it is desirable to have it and 
your report verified before a Commissioner to whom you are 
personally known. 

I am, very Respectfully, 

AMBROSE W. THOMPSON. 






State, City and County of New YorJc, ss, 

I, John Bissell, Notary Public in and for the State of New 
York, duly commissioned under the Great Seal of said State 
and affirmed, dwelling in the city of New York, do, by this pub- 
lic instrument, given under my hand and official seal, certify 
and make known, that on this 4th day of January, one thousand 
eight hundred and sixty, before me, personally appeared 
Samuel Genther, who has signed the annexed papers, who, 
upon his solemn oath upon the Holy Evangelists, by me duly 
administered to him, said that the said annexed Report, and 
also what is stated in the annexed letter, is true from his own 
personal knowledge and observation, and that the matters there- 
in contained, which are given as his opinion, he verily believes 
clearly and truly represents what may be done in the manner 
therein stated. 






Subscribed and Sworn to before me, 

JOHN BISSELL, V SAMUEL GENTHER. 

Notary Public. 



REPORT OF MR. SAMUEL GENTHER. 

New York Dec. 27th, 1859. 

Sir : In company with three others, making four passengers, I 
sailed from this port on the 25th of August last in the Schooner 
Nautilus. My object was two fold, the first to gratify my curiosity 
in exploring the country containing the Indian tombs, and second 
to profit by any gold discoveries we might make. We arrived 
after a passage of twenty-four days at the beautiful harbor of 
the Chiriqui Lagoon. 

We landed the next morning, procured a guide, and proceeded 
across the country by the old or Guaroraa Road, as it is called. 
We found the land, such as laid in the valleys, extremely fertile ; 
both it and the sides of the mountains were covered by trees of 
vast growth ; many were beautiful and bore fruits of various kinds, 
which, however, I am not able to classify or even to give the 
names which our guides repeated to us. I remember only those 
which seemed to be of the greatest utility ; amongst these was 
one of great hardness and durability, which is called the Grenadil- 
la, it is superior to our live oak ; there was also a large and pecu- 
liar species of oak, harder than our white oak, but not so dense 
as the live oak of Florida. There were many varieties of maho- 
gany, also cedar, ebony, basswood, and a species of lignum vitse, 
palm, the india rubber tree, various dye woods, etc. etc. and 
almost every variety of tropical plants, which it is impossible 
for me to characterize or describe. I have reason to believe, 
that if a person skilled in medical botany should visit this sec- 
tion of the country, that he would find rich stores of medicinal 
plants and gums. There is one peculiar tree called by the natives 
Sea Grape, it grows in almost every variety of angle and curve, 
is very durable and tougher than oak, it will prove of great value 
for knees and timbers in ship building ; its locality is on the 
coast 



We found the Guaroma, or old Indian Road, one of great 
difficulty ; it was, indeed, nothing more than a drain bed for the 
water running from the mountains, and it would be impossible 
i to make a wagon road or even a mule path of it ; yet it was the 
V one which had been followed for years as the only route from 
the Pacific, to the Atlantic, until Mr. Morel had discovered and 
opened the Chiriqui route, by which we returned, and which I 
will describe in its proper place. We were six days in the 
mountains, or until we reached Dolego. I found this Guaroma 
route one of great toil and fatigue, and scarcely enjoyed the 
varied and grand scenery of the mountains. 

I found but one place on the whole of this route which gave 
any evidence of gold, and this was but slight; a more careful 
prospecting might perhaps have given better proofs. Dolego is 
situated in a magnificent plain, so well watered that we could 
not proceed a hundred yards in any direction without finding a 
small water-course. The plain was relieved by beautiful trees, 
which grow in groups and fringe all the little streams. Thou- 
sands of cattle were running about and feeding in droves upon 
this plain. There were but few ranches or settlements ; and the 
town of Dolego consists of a few huts only. The inhabitants 
find subsistence so easily that they are listless and lazy. All 
they care for is a dance and a frolic, when by chance they can 
acquire some spirituous liquor. There was but one man who 
showed any ambition, and this was evinced by his desire to see 
a vessel ; he even went so far as to say that he would go to the 
Lagoon to see our Schooner, if we would wait a few days to 
enable him to get ready for the journey. 

We remained four days at Dolego and in its neighborhood, 
prospecting and examining the huacas. We were, however, in 
the rainy season, which prevented any great success. 

Having experienced so much difficulty in coming by the 
Guaroma route, we determined to return by the Chiriqui road, or 
that opened by Mr. Morel for the Chiriqui Improvement Com- 
pany. There was much difficulty in getting guides for this route ; 
there was either an ignorance, disincHnation, or some supersti- 
tious feeling which was in their way ; they would not go alone, 



but required several, and all refused unless we gave them double 

pay. 

As I am by profession a practical working engineer, I felt 
considerable curiosity to go over this route, which I had heard 
of, before leaving the United States : and I was, therefore, obser- 
vant of every feature in it, as I doubted much from what I had 
seen of the Guaroma route, whether a railroad could be practi- 
cable anywhere in this mountain region. 

On leaving Dolega, we commenced a very gradual ascent, 
which continued to the summit, a distance of nearly thirty miles ; 
this ascent was so small as to be scarcely perceptible, and but 
for the fact of looking backwards from the foot of the Boquete, 
and seeing the Pacific, we could not have realized that we had 
made any perceptible elevation. Over this part of the route rails 
could be laid as readily as upon any of our western prairies. 
On entering the forests of the mountain range, we were not 
certain whether we would not find difficulties in getting over 
the back bone of the Cordillera, but we had actually passed this 
without knowing it. 

On a slightly elevated ridge we noticed that the air came in 
opposite currents, but we did not realize that these were the At- 
lantic and Pacific sea or day breezes, until we found a small 
stream which kept widening as we proceeded downwards ; this 
we found was flowing towards the Atlantic. For about eight 
miles we kept winding around the spurs of the mountains ; in 
the ravines through these was the clearly traced road of the 
Chiriqui Improvement Company. In some places there are short 
distances of close, narrow ravines, which will have to be cut 
out and filled in to enable a carriage to pass. These eight miles 
are all that require any heavy work whatever; they led us to the 
three branches of the Robalo River; over this portion of the road 
the trees or thick shrubs had grown up in many places since 
Mr. Morel had cut his way through ; from the intersection of 
these branches with the Robalo to the Lagoon, the whole route 
is through a beautiful descending valley, through which the Ro- 
balo finds its way to the Chiriqui Lagoon. The whole distance 
is admirably adapted to a railroad, the elevation in my opinion 



% 

iiowhere exceeding from eighty to ninety feet to the mile. In 
the eight mile section through the mountains, the grades might 
possibly exceed this, but good engineering would reduce the 
whole of this estimated grade even below what I state it. The 
ascents on each side are so gradual that an engine would perform 
well in going up, while only the brakes would be required in 
the descent ; this equalizes the road to that of nearly a dead level. 
I have seldom or never seen a more beautiful locality for a road- 
way, in which nature has supplied nearly everything necessary 
for its construction and maintenance. 

Even on the plains beyond the mountains there is abundance 
of stone to form bridges, and of timber of the greatest durability 
for the cross ties ; some of this timber, the Grenadilla and Lignum 
Vitse,last ages, and are not subject to be destroyed by the worm. 
I did not go further towards the Pacific than Dolego, but from 
thence onward to the ocean I could see that it was one vast de- 
scending plain, similar to that which I have described between 
Dolego and the mountains. I regretted that I had no instru- 
ments with me by which I could have tested the exact elevations, 
but I am confident that those I have stated are rather over than 
Under what an instrumental survey will decide. 

The Chiriqui Lagoon is the grandest harbor I have ever seen. 
On every side it is land-locked by the promontories which shoot 
out from the main land, and the islands which rise up from the 
ocean with bold, high shores. On some of the islands there are 
heavy ranges of hills or mountains, rising in varying heights, I 
should judge of from 4 to 1200 feet. Generally there is deep 
water around all the shores, but in some places, coral rocks are 
seen; the entrances to the Lagoon are clear and well defined ; 
each of the three entrances are deep enough for any vessel, and 
no pilot need be required, as the waters are so clear that all the 
shallow places are seen at some distance ahead. This is pecu- 
liarly the case where coral forms the bottom : its whiteness may 
be seen for full a quarter of a mile in advance, even where there 
is five or six fathoms of water over it. 

Although I am, as I have said, an engineer by education and 
practice, I have given but little attention to the construction of 



roads or bridges ; notwithstanding this, my pursuits have been 
of that practical and hard-working character which have always 
caused close attention and observation, and these habits enable 
me to judge of the great advantages which this Chiriqui route 
has ; and if a good railroad is constructed, it will develope a coun- 
try along its line capable of yielding wealth to its settlers, not 
only from its mineral and agricultural resources, but also to them 
and to the people of the United States, a means of controlling 
commercial results between the Pacific Coasts and the ports of 
the Atlantic, as well as between Eastern Asia and Europe. 

My search was for gold. I have found all the evidences of its 
existence to induce my return there, with the assurance, from 
my own observation, that besides the precious metals, there are 
other minerals which will repay the miner. I send you herewith, 
specimens of the gold washed from the sand, and of gold quartz 
taken from the rock, a short distance from the Lagoon. 

SAMUEL GENTHER. 

To 

Ambrose "W. Thompson, Esq.,^ 

Of the Chiriqui Improvement Co. 



New York, January 3d, 1860. 

Sir:— 

In reply to your inquiry, dated December 28th, as to the length 
of road which is now in condition for carriage travel over the 
Isthmus of Chiriqui, I can state with certainty that there is more 
than 20 miles of such road, on the line opened by Mr. Morel. 
There is, also, about ten miles in the valley of the Robalo, that 
could soon be completed for the same purpose. 

I can also say that in my opinion the whole line of road could 
be opened, with temporary bridging, fit for carriage travel, in 
ninety days, by a gang of thirty men. 

SAMUEL GENTHER. 
To Ambrose W. Thompson, Esq. 



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I IRRARY OF CONGRESS 

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